Philippine-Based Airline, Zest Air, Banned From Flying Due to Major Safety Breaches

As of Friday, August 16, 2013, budget airline, Zest Air, has been grounded by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) for violating a series of safety breaches, including refueling with passengers onboard. The decision to suspend the airline’s operations was apparently based on the monitoring and surveillance conducted by a team of inspectors last week.
According to the report submitted by the inspectors, there were at least 6 continuous violations of Zest Air when it came to air safety standards. These included:

#1 - No qualified Accountable Manager on staff#2 - Failure to check aircraft logs, flight manifest, weather, etc.#3 - Failure to present to the CAAP the airman license (Aircraft Mechanic License) during ramp inspection#4 - Series of occurrences that affected several flight operations#5 - At least one incident of refueling with passengers on-board#6 - Excessive flight duty time case under the enforcement and legal service

Captain John Andrews, CAAP deputy director general, commented, "In the course of monitoring, this agency is alarmed of Zest Air’s series of serious deviations and infractions of the rules and standards prescribed under the Philippine Civil Aviation Regulations."

According to Andrews, Zest Air’s certificate to operate will remain suspended until the necessary corrective actions and compliance with aviation safety standards have been undertaken.

About Zest Air:
Zest Air, a Philippines-based airlines, has a fleet of just 11 aircrafts based at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, as well as hubs in Kalibo (Boracay) and Cebu. Their domestic destinations include Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Kalibo, Puerto Princesa, Tacloban, and Tagbilaran. Their international destinations include Shanghai, Jinjiang, Incheon, Kota Kinabalu, and Kuala Lumpur. For more details, visit www.zestair.com.ph